Another Writing on the Wall
by roswellchick22
Summary: Very AU. Takes place after season 4 but before season 5. Not your typical Crellie fic. Warnings of language, some violence, dark themes, etc. A long hiatus over, I bring chapter 9 in Ellie's POV!
1. Chapter I: Therapy

Another Writing on the Wall 

Rated: R for some violence, language, adult content, sexual content, etc.

Disclaimer: I do not own any character from Degrassi. If you see any that you do not recognize from the Degrassi world, they are mine.

A/N: The Writing's on the Wall will be finished before fall break starts. I can promise you guys that. The ending will be shocking. Enter the suspense music.

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Chapter I: Therapy

(Ellie's POV)

There I sat in a chair. The cushion was sticking to my skin as I moved around. I sat there snapping those rubber bands back and forth. It was the only thing that kept my nerves down. With all that happened during the school year, I was surprised I was still sitting in this group.

It's either that or sit around at home and watch my mother drink herself to death. No, Ellie don't think about that. I kept reminding myself that. God, life really sucks you know? It seemed to get worse when there were a few weeks before school was over. Let's take a recap shall we?

My mother drinks herself to death. Promises to get better when she eventually doesn't and I fall for the one guy who leaves me. Yeah, my life sucked. Probably mild to other people's problems.

I looked around the room at everyone else. On my left was Amanda. She reminded me of a Barbie but with brown hair. Her problem was an eating disorder she started during her sophomore year. And on my left was another girl, Jenny. Jenny was quiet, much like me. She kept to herself and I see her around school sometimes. Her problem? She was involved in drugs. Not those illegal kind. The ones you can purchase over the counter. She never told me what kind of prescription drugs they were but I take it they weren't the best for her.

Our group manager was busy talking. Something about expressing yourself? I don't know. I was staring off into space. But I got the feeling I was being watched. I mean, of course I would be. I'm in a damn therapy group. But I meant like intense staring. There, I caught who it was. Huh. I was surprised.

It was Craig Manning himself.

Poor kid. He has a mental problem and lost his girl in the same year. Just like me. I cut and lost my best friend. That was the only thing we have in common. Group sessions like these and Ashley, his ex and my best friend. I kept his gaze just to humor him when he got all shaken up and looked away.

I just smirked at myself. There was just something about him.

I looked up at the clock and we had 5 minutes left. I cheered inside. I was anxious to meet up with Marco at his place and hang out with him. I kept snapping my rubber bands out of boredom.

"And since I have to leave early, this session is now officially over." Mark, the group leader of these damn sessions had said to us. He let all of us go and I stayed behind, only so I could not get my ass trampled over. After it was just a few of us left, I left the room. But of course I wasn't alone.

Craig somehow caught up with me. "Hey, slow down." He said to me.

"Why? Am I too fast for you?" I sneered back at him. I was being a bitch to him. He didn't do anything wrong. It was starting to become natural to me. Especially since school was over.

"Well, yeah." Craig ended up jumping in front of me, forcing me to stop. I just sighed at him.

"You stopped me. Is there something you wanted?" I asked him. I was getting a bit frustrated.

"I was wondering if you were heading to Marco's cause he invited me too." He told me. Marco invited him? Why didn't Marco tell me? I would ask him that as soon as I got there.

"Yeah I am." I replied back.

"Great. I am too. I just didn't want to walk there alone." Craig actually looked kinda vulnerable there.

"Ha, Craig Manning is scared to walk over to Marco's? Wait until the Grapevine hears about that." I mocked him. It was making him uncomfortable. "Fine. We can walk together, huh?"

With that said, I started walking again. With him following. And I knew he was staring at me from behind. I just got a strange vibe from him. And I didn't know if it was good or bad.

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A/N: Ellie does seem a bit OOC and Craig will too. It's all a part of my plan. Chapter 2, done in Craig's POV will be up soon. Like the other series, the POV's will go back and forth. The Writing's on the Wall (Palex fic) will be updated probably tomorrow or Tuesday. Please read and review. Once that one is finished, I will work on my other uncompleted stories.


	2. Chapter II: Stare

Another Writing on the Wall 

Rated: R for violence, language, adult content, sexual content, etc.

Disclaimer: I do not own any character from Degrassi. Any character you do not recognize I do are mine.

A/N: This is a new continuation of the Writing's on the Wall series. This does involve Ellie and Craig as the main characters. I was upset by that whole Manny/Craig/Ellie thing so this is my revenge. Haha.

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Chapter II: Stare

(Craig's POV)

Boring, boring, this is so fucking boring. Why the hell was I humming that? I must be so bored. I'm so bored I wrote a song about being bored within the last 2 minutes in my head. Why did Joey make me come to this is on a Saturday? Oh yeah, no chores. I slouched down in my seat as Mark kept yapping away.

Everyone looked bored. Usually with these damn meds I'm as high as a kite. Not literally but you guys get it. But I wasn't excited. I was moping around, feeling sorry for myself. That fucking sucked.

I get rejected from Joey, my girlfriend leaves me for England, my guitar gets stolen and I'm back in Degrassi, labeled as a psycho. Great. It should be a psycho guitarist instead. I looked at the clock. 10 minutes until this was over.

I looked around the room. There was Amanda, the human Barbie. And there was Rod. Rod was a cool guy. He's into music, like I am. He's not a psycho like me but he is close to it.

And then, there's Ellie.

Ellie looked as bored as I was. But she looked different. Maybe I haven't noticed but she looked in a good word, good. Her hair was straight and longer than during the school year. She was snapping those rubber bands around her wrist again. What's up with that? I've heard the rumors of her being a cutter but I never seen it.

Only Marco and probably Ashley did.

Ashley… I still love her. But I do despise her. She left me. She's gonna fall for some British guy and eat escargot or something on some fancy river. Okay, stop Craig. You're jumping to conclusions. Even though I have the feeling that it will. Okay, back to this group. I couldn't pay attention very well in these places.

Especially when Ashley's best friend is right across from me. Don't know what is about her. Maybe it's that red hair of hers. Maybe. Let's stop analyzing this. I kept sighing. Mark was seriously dragging this on forever. At least time went by so fast. Now we had only 3 minutes left.

"Okay guys, since I have to leave early, this session is officially over." Mark said. Inside of me cheered. Whoa, that caused an upset to my stomach. Maybe I shouldn't have had that burrito with Marco earlier today.

Everyone rushed out of the room like it was on fire. It was amazing how hyper we were to get out of something that is supposedly helping us. But Ellie stayed behind like I did. And then she left. I guess she was waiting for everyone to leave like I was. I had to talk to her. At least say hey.

Yeah I know we aren't exactly friends but we should be able to say hey. I mean, she just lost her best friend who was my girlfriend. We see each other around school and hang out with the same people but I don't remember ever saying hi. Or her to me actually. So why am I starting this now? Kinda late right?

Ellie is a fast mover. Just walking to catch up with her, I was getting tired. "Hey, slow down." I shouted to her.

"Why? Am I too fast for you?" Ellie said. Even from behind, I knew she had a sneer on her face. Why was she being mean to me? It must be girl thing. I remember how Ashley used to act like that sometimes. I decided to stop her from walking away.

I moved faster than she did and jumped in front of her to block her. "Well yeah." I said to her. She just sighed and I knew she lost. Haha.

"You stopped me. Is there something you wanted?" She asked me.

"I was wondering if you were heading to Marco's because he invited me too." I explained. She looked suspicious. She had a right to be I guess.

"Yeah I am." She said.

"Great. I am too. I just didn't want to walk there alone." Gah, why did I just say that?

"Ha, Craig Manning is scared to walk to Marco's? Wait until the Grapevine hears about that." She was mocking me. I expected it from her. Hell, I expect a lot of things from her. "Fine, we can walk there together, huh?" And then she started walking again. I just followed behind her. I put my hands in my pockets and stared at her from behind. I tend to do that a lot.

I wondered if she was feeling my vibe I was giving her.

If she wasn't, then she must be clueless than I thought.

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It wasn't that far to Marco's place. We were practically almost there. With me walking next to Ellie, I heard her humming a familiar song. It was by the Ramones. I didn't expect Ellie to be interested in that. Don't get me wrong. I knew Ellie was into the same music as Ashley was but the Ramones wasn't known to Ashley. That was pretty impressive.

"I feel like I'm on paradise," Ellie sung outloud.

"I'm Affected" was one of my favorite songs by them.

"The Ramones, Ellie? Didn't take you as a fan." I said to her. She just smirked at me.

"It's not popular around here but I listen to them. I'm a closet fan." She said to me.

"Cool. So am I." I said. Then we stopped. We were at Marco's. That went by fast.

Ellie knocked on the door. We both heard Marco from the other side. "Coming!" And then the door opened.

"Craig and Ellie. My two best friends. Come in." He let us in. Ellie dumped her bag on the couch and I threw my jacket on the chair.

"So what is the special occasion?" Ellie asked him.

"I can't be around my two friends?" Marco laughed. That made me laugh. Of course you can't.

"No, not really." Ellie said to him. Huh, it was like we share the same brain or something.

"Okay. Well I just wanted to hang out with the both of you and I know for a fact that you both do not want to be at home, right?" Marco asked us. We both just looked at him and then at each other. I guess the home front was bad for both of us.

"I guess." I said to him. I sat down on the couch.

"All right. Let the hanging out begin in friend city." Marco said. He went into the kitchen for a while and I heard a lot of noise coming from there.

Ellie sat on the chair where my jacket was. She crossed her legs and put her head on her hand.

"Expecting that from him?" She asked me. I just looked at her and shook no. "Same here." She said.

"Well Marco always the ability to surprise us. We should testimony to that." I said back to her smiling. That actually brought a small laugh from her. I didn't think she wanted to let me hear that but I did. She had a nice laugh. "You should laugh more often." I told her. It caught her off guard.

"You're something else Manning." She said to me. She never called me by my first name. Why? I don't know.

"Why is that?" I asked her.

"Because you just are. I don't need a reason to say that." She replied back.

Marco came back. "Okay guys, I rented like 6 horror movies and we are going to watch them all so no sneaking out." He looked at Ellie. "That meant you." I smiled.

Ellie raised her hands in that 'I don't know what you're talking about' look. She got up and sat next to me on the couch. "So what are we watching first, Del Rossi?" she called him.

"Um, Friday the 13th." Marco replied. I sighed deeply. Not those damn movies, I thought.

"The first one?" Ellie asked.

"Yep. That's the best one." Marco said. He put in the tape and sat down on the floor.

Ellie moved around on the couch before she got in that comfy spot. The movie started and had that creepy ass music. I despised this movie to a point. I just didn't like any of the Friday the 13th series. All of them were dumb. But like Marco said, the first one was the best one. I would agree to that.

During the movie, Ellie jumped some at a scary part. She grabbed my hand by accident. She looked at what she did and at me. "Sorry." She took her hand back and ignored me. I couldn't stop looking at her and managed to do it. I had to force myself. There was something about the way we touched. It was different from Ashley.

And you want to know what's bad?

I liked it.

And all I could do about it was stare at the TV.

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A/N: Craig does seem a bit OOC but its my story so I can do what I want. Have any suggestions on it, email me and I'll most likely reply back. Part 3, done in Ellie's POV will be up soon.


	3. Chapter III: Cut

Another Writing on the Wall 

Rated: R for some violence, language, adult content, adult situations, sexual content, alcohol use, dark themes, etc.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of our favorite characters from Degrassi. I wish I did though.

A/N: Thanks to those who reviewed. I wasn't sure about this chapter but I somehow managed to finish it during study hall. Yeah, it took about 45 minutes to write it all out and then type it up at school and at home.

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Chapter III: Cut

(Ellie's POV)

I jumped. I can't believe I jumped during a stupid horror movie. Just something about them that creeps me out. I think my life can definitely be creepier than a weirdo running around killing people for revenge. But Friday the 13th was not my life.

But the scariest part?

I grabbed Craig's hand. And then took it back. A natural reaction? It was either his hand or the couch and his hand was somehow closer. But I felt so embarrassed. I don't know what for. I hate when I don't know why I feel the way I do. But enter the awkwardness. Craig was completely silent once I said I was sorry and ignored me. Good choice right? I didn't expect to do it. I really didn't.

After the movie was actually over, Marco and Craig both left to the kitchen. I let out the most held in sigh I ever had. It was a sigh of relief. I was actually breathing again. I leaned on the back of the couch and watched those countless infomercials on selling crock-pots and other useless junk.

I heard Marco laugh from the kitchen. Even a slight laugh from Craig. What were they talking about? Better not be about me. Great, now I'm getting all paranoid. I got a shiver from the room. I was wearing long sleeves and got cold. Strange.

See I'm freaking out over nothing. Just remember to breathe. Breathe, Ellie. Marco and Craig came back from the kitchen. I started snapping my rubber bands again.

"Miss us?" Marco laughed. He sat back down on the floor.

"Oh yeah." I just said it to humor him. Which he took lightly.

"And what about Craig?" I scoffed.

"What about Craig?" I asked back. Marco just gave me a look and sighed.

"Whatever, El." He restarted the movie since it was on pause. Some girl with blonde hair was about to get her ass killed. I just shook my head. Don't they know if you have sex, you die? Too late now. She's a goner. You could hear the girl screaming and poor Marco. He jumped and covered his eyes. Ha-ha, chicken. But a cute one right?

I smiled at Marco's reaction and reminded him that it's only a movie. But I glanced over at Craig. He looked uncomfortable. I bet because of me. I rolled my eyes and leaned on the arm of the couch. This movie was more interesting than wondering about my hand touching Craig's. I looked at the clock. It was like only 4:15. The movie was on for 45 minutes at least. I still had a long way to get through.

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I left early.

I lied to Marco's face and left.

There was some truth to my lie. I did have to get home soon before mom did. She freaks if I'm not there before she is. 'Probably so I can clean up after her.' I thought.

My walk home was cut short when I stood in front of my house. No lights were on, which meant mom wasn't there. Thank God. I used my key to get in and went right up to my room. On my bed was my guitar, which I tried to attempt playing again. Ever since Ash left, I've been "musically alone." She was my music partner and she considered her mine. But deep down, I knew it was Craig who was her real music partner. Nothing but lies.

There he is again. Still wrecking loose in my brain.

I set on my bed and picked up my guitar and strummed a couple of chords. And on nightstand was a pair of drumsticks. Yes guys, Ellie have been practicing the drums, too. Well trying to practice.

I sat there for 10 minutes before I heard the door slam.

Great.

That meant she was drunk as hell. But she I meant my mother. The one who was supposed to take care of me. The one who promised me that she would quit drinking. Only person I depended on was myself.

Mom, you promised me that you wouldn't. That you wouldn't drink anymore. It hurts so much. It really does and I hate the way it makes me feel. I tried not to have flashbacks of lying promises but I couldn't. It got suspiciously quiet downstairs. I didn't move and stopped strumming.

A glass broke.

I jumped and heard what sounded like crying. "Mom?" I whispered. I was frozen. Then I realized it was crying. I got up and left my room to downstairs. "Mom?" I asked again louder. I was creeping down the stairs like I was scared. And I was.

Once I got to the last stair, I saw a broken vodka bottle on the kitchen floor. Vodka was everywhere. And where was my mom? Passed out on the couch as usual. Her face was streaked with tears of disappointment, not pain. She didn't hurt herself. She was pissed off that she wasted a good and full liquor bottle. There was only one thing I could do. And that was clean up the mess she made.

I picked up the glass off the floor. "Ouch!" I accidentally cut my finger. And there it was. Tempting me to do it. 'No.' I kept telling myself. I threw the glass away before I did something wrong.

After mopping up all the vodka up, that was tempting too, I just stared at my mother's drunken self. She makes me sick. There was so much I wanted to say to her. Some much anger and sadness I was keeping inside. 'Don't freak, Ellie. Just breathe.' Reminding myself that wasn't working. I just turned away and went up the stairs to the bathroom.

The tears came back after I told myself to not cry.

In the bathroom, I looked at myself in the mirror. I felt like my reflection was laughing at me. The whole world was laughing at me. I shivered and shook my head.

I couldn't stop the pain.

And I would regret what I was gonna do next.

I opened the cabinet and pulled out one of those makeup concealers with the mirror. I looked terrible when I saw myself again. My eyeliner was running. But I wasn't going to fix myself up again.

I took out the little powder and there it was under it.

A razor blade.

No more compasses with pointy ends. It was razor blades that affected me the most.

I leaned against the door and locked it. I sat down with my back to the wall and lifted up my sleeve. There were only two new marks visible on my arm. The old ones cleared up. More room to make new ones. The blade went in deep across my skin. And I started crying again. They were silent tears instead.

Why can't anyone save me? I want to be saved. But no one can hear me. Or see me. Life sucked.

That night, I didn't make one mark. I didn't make two.

I made three instead and I wasn't finished.

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A/N: Kinda dark themed right there with the whole cutter thing. I never was a cutter but I do understand her pain so it was natural to write it. Chapter IV, which is in Craig's POV will be updated soon. Any questions or suggestions, either put them in the review section, email me or even IM me at LCBears177. Ciao.


	4. Chapter IV: Chaotic

Another Writing on the Wall 

Rated: R for language, some violence, adult content, sexual content, dark themes, etc.

Disclaimer: I do not own any character from Degrassi. I sure wish I did though.

A/N: Here's chapter IV (4) done in Craig's POV. I had a few days of writer's block so, I hope it's good. Also new chapter in the original part, The Writing's on the Wall will be updated Sunday or Monday.

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Chapter IV: Chaotic 

(Craig's POV)

Friday the 13th huh? Like I said, I despise movies like those. But it was entertaining to see Marco jump 20 feet in the air and hide at the scary parts. He's a cool guy. But I sure didn't mind teasing him about it.

Some guy got killed with an arrow in his neck. What a way to go, right? That was just, blah. First time that Craig Manning has no comment. No side remarks, no anything. What the hell is wrong with me? I've been so off today. Either I'm changing or those pills are actually working. Damn medication. Why did you work and knock some damn sense into me when I thought about heading to England? Think I was going to deal with her rejecting me and leaving here in Toronto? Fuck that. I wasn't gonna do that.

That was a dumb idea.

Hell, in the end, I got my ass kicked and my guitar stolen. All that for Ashley. I hate her. I love her. I don't know what I know. I know she damn well confuses me greatly. I hate that. Manny was a fling, a long fling that I moved on but Ash was my soul mate. She was my everything. My other half, my music partner. Even with this whole me becoming a psycho bit, she was there. And now she isn't. Yeah, I'm dealing with it. Writing dark lyrics on how I hate her, how she made me feel, and how fucked up I am. She's not here anymore but as she hasn't left my mind.

Marco, along with Jimmy and even Joey are all I have. Joey's been more on the moping part since Caitlin left. Even Angie's moping. But not me. Despite Jimmy's you know, situation, he's been there for me, even Marco. And now he brought Ellie into the picture. I don't even know Ellie, except she's best friends with Ash and Marco. But other than that, I don't know her. And she doesn't know me. Marco told me that Ellie thinks I'm a psycho guitarist and she's right, I am.

And sitting near her and being around her was sight to see.

She just, I don't know, seemed more of a free spirit around Marco. And even Ash when she was here. Marco said that we'd rather be here than at home. What was her problem at home? It's none of my business but I'm curious. And watching her lie to Marco so perfectly made me more curious. Yeah, I knew she was lying. Too bad Marco didn't, but the way she left so abruptly was weird. Did I just say that it was weird? I have no right to say that, huh?

I was so deep into my thoughts that I didn't see Marco snapping his fingers in front of me. "What?" I snapped.

Marco just raised an eyebrow. "You were spacing," he shook his head. "And I think you should get home, right?" I sighed and thought about that. I should start heading home. Besides, I promised Angie I'd teach her how to take pictures with my camera. Better now than later.

"Yeah, I should get going." I said to Marco. I stretched on the couch and felt relaxed. Marco nodded his head and went to the TV and took the movie out.

"Never again." He shoved the tape in the box. I just laughed. He could never get through a horror movie alone. I picked up my stuff and said goodbye to Marco. And left his house. The clouds were getting darker, like cloudy. 'Is it gonna rain?' I wondered cause I would get wet. I only had a few blocks to get to before something would actually happen. I even started humming a Ramones song. Now it was stuck in my head.

It was the same one that Ellie was singing earlier today.

It was an addicting song.

And Ellie knew it like I did. We sure did have a lot of things in common. Things that I didn't even notice.

Great, now I was thinking about her.

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Girls are not my best subjects. I mean, Ashley was the girl I thought was for me. I still do. Manny was just a lust thing that I know she hasn't gotten over. But why was I adding Ellie to that mix? She was just a girl.

I felt little water drops on my head. Great, it was starting to rain. But I was already close to home. I opened the door and heard Angie's voice from upstairs. "Craig!" she hopped down the stairs. Her hair was in her ponytail.

"Hey." I just put my stuff down near the door and locked it behind me. I heard thunder from outside.

"Dad was worried about you if you were gonna get home before it started to rain. And now you're not gonna get wet." Angie said. Sometimes she can be so cute but also a pain in the ass.

"Where's Joey anyway?" I asked her. She just shrugged her shoulders and went hopping into the living room and went back to watching TV. Cartoons were her only thing. She was in love with Spongebob Squarepants but now it was Rugrats. She was a rugrat.

I went past the living room and into the kitchen to find something to drink. I opened the fridge door and looked at my options. Milk, water, orange juice, some of those ice tea things and Pepsi. I took a Pepsi instead.

"Craig?" That was Joey. And it sounded like it came from upstairs.

"Yeah?" I said from the end of the stairs.

"Can you come up here for a sec?" He said. He didn't sound too good. I got a bad vibe. I went up the stairs slowly and the last stair creaked some.

"Joey, where are you?" I asked the upstairs.

"In my room." Joey said. His door was creaked open some. I felt a bit nervous. I knocked on the door and let myself in. And there was Joey, just sitting on the edge of the bed with his face in his hands.

"Hey, you okay?" I asked it. That was a dumb question. Nice going Craig.

He just looked up at me and I saw an empty bottle on the floor near the trashcan. They weren't any of mine. I put the two together and threw the bottle away. "What was that about?" I asked him. I was the one who was supposed to try to kill myself, not him. He was supposed to be the smart one.

"I, I..." He just treaded off. With Caitlin leaving, he hasn't been himself. And I could definitely see why.

"It's okay." I tried to calm him down.

"No it's not. I was so stupid and blind to let her go. I was stupid to fight with her and now she's off in a whole other country." Joey said. It seemed we had a thing for girls leaving the country.

I couldn't do anything but stand there and put a hand on his shoulder. "Remember Joey, I do understand." I told him. He just looked straight ahead at the wall where there was a picture of all four of us, smiling together. I was with Angie on one side and Joey and Caitlin was on the other side. And now there were only three of us.

From that point on, I knew it was gonna be very chaotic.  
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A/N: This is also updated first over at my livejournal, phoenixflame87 If you want sneak peaks, etc, go there first, most likely I'll give you guys a sneak preview before I post the whole chapter. Chapter V, done in Ellie's POV will be up soon!


	5. Chapter V: Kiss

Another Writing on the Wall 

Rated: R for language, some violence, adult content, sexual content, dark themes, etc.

Disclaimer: I do not own any character from Degrassi. I really wish I did though.

A/N: There is a sequel in the works and if you think this fic is full of drama, wait until the sequel. Sneak peaks of the next chapter are over at my livejournal. Keep a look out for that. Here goes chapter V, done in Ellie's POV.

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Chapter V: Kiss

(Ellie's POV)

I laid there on the bathroom floor for hours, not moving. The blood had dried up on my skin. And I discovered on the floor too. I wiped away the stained tears from my face and sighed. When I got up, I looked into the mirror again. I didn't feel like me again. I turned on the faucet and ran cold water. Once I washed off the blood from my arms and the floor, I cleaned the razor.

It did the trick.

I hid it back inside the power concealer and put it back in the cabinet. I cleaned myself up and was ready to face the world again. Or at least face my mother. I pretended as if nothing happened. I went back to my room and shut the door behind me. Sitting on the bed, I picked up my guitar and held it. This instrument used to keep me sane enough to not cut myself. But I had no inspiration. Nothing was helping me deal with everything. And I hated that.

I looked over at the clock. It was getting late. I pulled out my diary from under my mattress and put my guitar down in the corner. I threw the diary on the bed and began to undress myself to get into my pjs. I saw the new scars I made on my arm again. They were slowly healing.

I pulled out my black pjs and put them on. Everything I owned was black. It matched my mood and my life.

Throwing myself on the bed, I ended up writing a few lines in my diary. They didn't make any sense. They were uncompleted. I tried not to stress over it and didn't. I turned the lights off and got into bed. But my cell went off.

I recognized the ringtone. It was Marco's.

"Yeah?" I asked him.

"Hey, El, I was making sure you got home okay." He told me. Marco was such a worrywart but it was good enough for me that he did worry.

"Yes, Marco, I'm fine." Another lie I told him.

"Good. Well you and I shall hang out tomorrow with Jimmy. He and Hazel got into another fight." Marco suggested to me. Poor Jimmy. He's been fighting with Hazel on and off since the summer started.

"Yeah, we can do that." I said to him.

"Okay, I'll tell Jimmy that you agreed to come with us. I'll see you around." Marco said.

"Bye." I said to Marco and hung up my phone. I set it down on the nightstand and got deep under the covers. They were cold. I moved around to get comfortable and found a spot with my back facing away from my bedroom door. I heard footsteps.

"Ellie?" it was a knock at the door and it was my mother's voice. No, no go away, please. I was begging her from inside. I heard the door crack open and closed my eyes, pretending I was asleep. She called me again. "Ellie?"

I didn't reply back to her. She caused me too much pain already. It would hurt more if I said something now. After she got the message that I was "asleep," she left and closed the door. I let out a deep sigh I was holding in. And for some reason, I started to cry again. And my pillow became wet from my tears.

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It was Sunday. And mom was out again. I sat around the house. I was wearing a black long sleeved shirt and a brown shirt over it that was short sleeved. My hair was in a ponytail and I was wearing black jeans. I sat on the couch, thinking to myself. I had to get out of the house.

"I have to get out of here." I said out loud. I picked up my keys to the house and left that place I called a home. I walked around the neighborhood before I came to the park. It wasn't far from the school or the ravine. Just right in between. I threw on my black jacket and sat down on a bench.

There weren't a lot of people around, which was what I wanted.

I kept my head down and kept myself busy in my thoughts. I didn't notice that a figure was standing there in front of me.

"Excuse me, I was wondering, are you okay?" the voice sounded young. I looked up and there was a girl who was probably around 10. She was wearing a bright red sweatshirt and blue jeans with her hair in a ponytail. It was curly hair.

"Um, yeah, I'm fine." I told her. I gave her a weak smile.

"Well miss, I was just wondering cause you looked sad." She told me. How could a 10-year-old see that? I didn't even know who she was.

"Angie!" I saw the girl jump and cringe.

"My brother is gonna be mad at me." She told me. I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Why?" I asked her.

"Because I ran off." She told me.

"Well where's your brother?" I asked her. I sat up against the bench and crossed my legs.

"Over there." She pointed to some guy in the distance who looked a lot like Craig!

"There you are, I cannot keep going around this park looking for you." Craig said to her. He saw me and stopped in mid-sentence. "Ellie, what a nice surprise." He gave me a smile. For some reason, that smile was comforting.

"Yeah same here." I told him. Angie looked at the both us and had a confused look on her face.

"Craig, you know her?" she asked him. She was cute.

"Remember Ashley?" Craig asked her. She nodded her head. "This is her best friend, Ellie." Angie smiled at me and waved.

"I'm Angela but Craig and daddy call me Angie." She told me.

"Nice to meet you Angie." I told her. "I'm Eleanor but everyone calls me Ellie." I gave her a soft smile.

"Craig, can I go play on the swings? Please?" She gave him a sad puppy face. Craig rolled his eyes and said that she could. "Yay!" she said bye to me and headed directly to the swings.

"She seems quite hyper." I said to Craig. He sat down next to me on the bench. And I let him.

"She's very excited." He laughed. "But she's all that I have. Included Joey but despite me being bossy to her, I do love her." He said to me. Our eyes met.

"She seems taken by you. I guess it must be heaven when your step brother is involved in all the trouble and she isn't." I said to him. He just laughed a little and looked back at Angie, who was swinging on the swings.

"So did you hear about Jimmy and Hazel?" Craig asked me. I nodded my head yes.

"Yeah, Marco told me. It sucks I guess. To be in a relationship and not having the other person be there for you." I said. I guess it hit a nerve because I felt Craig moving closer to me.

"I should know, right? I mean, I'm the poster child of relationships gone wrong." Craig said against me. I felt goosebumps come over me.

"You're not the only one." I tugged at my jacket before facing him again.

And all I said about Craig went away from my mind once his lips touched mine. And I didn't pull away. It started off soft when our lips touched. Barely touched each other.

Craig Manning, you are one hell of a kisser.

XXXX

A/N: Yeah, Craig and Ellie kissed. Whoo! And it's not the end for Angie making a cameo in this story. A lot of other characters will come into play around Craig/Ellie. For example, Marco, Jay and even Manny will play important roles. Chapter VI will be up soon. Please read and review this chapter guys. It helps me to know what you guys think about the story.


	6. Chapter VI: Innuendo

Another Writing on the Wall 

Rated: R for language, some violence, adult content/situations, sexual content, dark themes, etc.

Disclaimer: I do not own any character from Degrassi. I seriously wish I did though.

A/N: Um, this chapter is done in Craig's POV. And yeah, I'm making his family life more involved with the story and drama is so gonna happen. Wait until future chapters to see what I'm talking about. Hell, even the sequel! But please read and review this part.

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Chapter VI: Innuendo

(Craig's POV)

I kissed her.

I kissed Ellie Nash. And you know what, I don't regret it.

It was so soft like our lips were even touching but I could feel it. I never felt a kiss like that from Ashley or Manny and that was saying something. But I didn't pull away. Neither did she. It wasn't until Angie brought us back to reality. "Oooo…" she teased and smiled.

Ellie pulled away from me and turned red some. No, Ellie don't pull away. I wanted to say that so badly but I didn't. I let her slip away. I know it seems sudden and it is for Ellie but not for me. Ever since seeing her in-group after the summer, I began noticing her more and more. I don't think she knows that I think she has beautiful hair. Or that she has an amazing smile when she smiles. I didn't want to frighten her away but that kiss might have…

"Angie." I said, annoyed. She just giggled at the both of us and went back to the playground and started going on the slide.

I heard Ellie sigh next to me. She didn't look at me. She was avoiding me. Who could blame her? I did kiss her out of nowhere.

"Um, well look, I'm gonna go and meet Marco up. I'll um, see you around." Ellie said without looking at me. She gave a wave to Angie who waved back at her and she was gone like that. She slipped out of my fingers. I could only watch her walk away from me. Once she turned the corner, I just shook my head. I let out the deepest sigh I was holding in.

Angie came skipping back over to me. "Where did Ellie go?" I was surprised she remembered her name.

"She had to go." I told her. Angie seemed pleased with my answer. "Come on, let's get home before Joey freaks on where we were." I told her. She nodded her head and started skipping across the park. What does Joey feed this child? He needs to stop.

I dreaded going home. Ever since seeing that empty pill bottle in Joey's room, I wondered what was going on with him. And for some reason, I was having a bad feeling coming over as I was chasing Angie around the corner.

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Angie was so anxious to watch cartoons that she got to the house before I did. 'That girl is too fast for me.' I kept thinking as I slowed down and took a breather. Angie was already inside the house when she snatched the key out of my hands. I stood there on the small porch before sitting on the step.

Next thing I heard was Angie screaming. I jumped and ran into the house.

Angie was just standing still in the kitchen, shaking. "Angie what's wrong?" I asked her. I was walking slowly to the kitchen. She didn't say anything but pointed to the body on the floor. It was Joey.

"Joey?" I rushed over to him. He wasn't breathing. He wasn't doing anything. I was gonna freak out. No, I have to stay calm for Angie. "Angie, grab the telephone." I told her. She ran out the kitchen to get the phone and came back. For some reason, I instantly dialed 411 instead of 911. How stupid can you get?

I dialed 911 and explained my emergency. "What's happening to daddy?" Angie asked me.

"I don't know." I saw the look in Angie's eyes. It was fear and sadness.

All I know that the next thing was nothing but a big blur.

I remember seeing the ambulance coming. And them taking Joey away in it. I sat in the seat inside the ambulance, watching them do their work. They didn't say much that Joey had overdosed on something. I couldn't say or do anything that would make the situation better.

Instead, I just held Angie in my lap as we rode to the hospital.

XXXX

I despise hospitals as much as I despise horror movies. I sat there in the waiting room where it was labeled emergency.

Angie, who seemed a lot calmer that I was, was watching Shrek with a few other kids. In the middle of the room was a large glass case that had birds in it. My hand was practically numb from filling out the paperwork. I didn't know what kind of insurance we had or what Joey's social security number was. I was only 17.

I yawned some and flipped through a magazine that was in the seat near me. Angie said she didn't like the movie too much since she already saw it 20 times. She sat next to me and laid her head on my shoulder. For some reason, I actually felt like I was a good brother to her. She needed me and right now, so did Joey.

We sat there for what seemed like hours until a nurse came to us. Her nametag read, Lisa. Lisa brought Angie and I to a room where Joey was hooked up to a monitor and wires. Scared the crap out of me. Angie didn't want to go in so she sat in a chair outside the room. Lisa, who seemed nice, gave her a piece of chocolate. And I wasn't gonna nag on it.

"So what happened to him?" I asked the doctor. He told me his name, which was Andrew Wood and that Joey had overdosed on medication pills. Medication pills? What kind I wondered.

"You're probably wondering what kind he took. I can tell by the expression on your face." He said to me. He sure was a mind reader. I just nodded my head.

"We're unsure as of now, we're waiting for blood work to come to tell us what's flowing in his bloodstream." Andrew told me. I just nodded my head in understanding.

"Will he be okay?" I asked him.

"Yes, your father," I cut him off.

"Step father." I corrected him.

"Step father, he'll make it through this. But I'm curious to know why he would do this to himself. He's a fairly healthy man and nothing is wrong with him physically." Andrew said.

"It's been a mess at the homefront." I said to him. He just nodded his head in understanding and told me to get some sleep. He promised to call if any changes occur and what was really going on. I gave one look at Joey sleeping before I left the room. I let out a deep breath.

"Is daddy gonna be okay?" Angie asked me. I couldn't exactly lie to her. But I couldn't tell her the truth either.

"Yeah. He'll be fine." I told her. That was the best answer. She looked unsure at me but shrugged her shoulders. I saw in her hands were 3 Hershey chocolate kisses.

"Lisa gave them to me." She told me.

"Look, we're gonna go home okay?" I told her. Angie pouted some. I know she wanted to be with Joey but not with everything going on. "We'll come back tomorrow but we should get some sleep. And the doctor will keep the both of us informed okay?" She gave a soft smile and nodded her head.

And for the first time, I didn't look back at the hospital. I wanted to get away from there.

XXXX

I made Angie hot chocolate to make her go to sleep, which she did. I wish it would do the same for me. I laid there on the couch with the TV on. I wasn't watching it. Instead, I was thinking. How could so much come at me at once? Did life already hate me? I hate my life.

I mean, Joey's in the hospital for a stupid suicidal attempt gone wrong, Angie has no idea what's going and I kissed Ellie.

Ellie. She was the only who could make me feel better. I wish I could forget about that kiss but I can't.

It still haunts me.

It still torments me.

God, Ellie, why did I do that?

XXXX

A/N: Yeah Joey drama. I know what's gonna happen next and writing these chapters so fast is a piece of cake. Like chocolate cake. Anyway, chapter VII is in the works done in Ellie's POV and be on the lookout for that. SO what did you guys think? I know, drama but that's why it's Degrassi, right? PLZ r/r this chapter okay?


	7. Chapter VII: Ravine

Another Writing on the Wall 

Rated: R for language, some violence, adult content/situations, sexual content, dark themes, etc.

Disclaimer: Do not own any character from Degrassi. Really wish I did though.

A/N: This chapter 7, done in Ellie's POV. Remember to read the previous chapter since this chapter will tie into it also. Just a small recap: Ellie met Angie, Craig kissed Ellie and Joey ended up in the hospital for a um, "overdose" on something that will be discovered soon. Exciting, huh? On to chapter 7.

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Chapter VII: Ravine

(Ellie's POV)

He kissed me.

Craig Manning kissed me.

And what's worse is that I think I liked it.

Gah, this is not supposed to happen. I wasn't suppose to accept kisses from my best friend's boyfriend. I had to leave the park. So I did.

I was walking really fast away from the park. Almost like I was running. Ellie Nash does not run. Nor does she kiss boyfriends that aren't her. That's a Manny Santos deal right there. She realized where she was headed and stopped. "I do not wanna go home." I said to myself. Mom wasn't at home but I didn't want to be there. I just left there not too long ago.

Instead, I turned the corner and headed to someone else's place. Alex.

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Alex opened the door, looking half-asleep. "Hey, Nash." Alex opened the door and let me in.

"Sleeping in late?" I asked her. She laughed and went into the kitchen. She gave me a Pepsi and grabbed one for herself.

I sat down at the bar and just stared at my can. "A penny for your thoughts." Alex said to me.

"Huh, my thoughts are worth more than pennies." I said back to her.

"Look, I'm not the one who does this whole let's talk about it thing but is something wrong?" Whoa, Alex never did that whole talking about it thing. This was a first.

"Eh, it's nothing. Just bored I guess." I lied. She accepted my lie too. Seemed only she and Marco were oblivious to them.

"Look, I'm heading down to the Ravine tonight. Despite Jay being there, I wanna go have some fun. You should come with." Alex suggested. The ravine? I can't do that. I've heard what happens at the Ravine. What happened with Alex and Jay was because of it. I mean, I blame both Jay and Emma for it but still, I heard freaky stuff goes on around there. I should fit right in right?

"I don't know," I said.

"Come on. It'll be fun. It's better than staying at home." Alex reminded me. Like her, we both had some mother problems.

"True. I was gonna hang out with Marco and Jimmy though." I told her.

"Cancel it and say you've got other plans. I'm sure they'll both understand." Alex said.

I took a deep breath and made my decision.

"Fine. I'll go."

I knew I was gonna regret this.

XXXX

It got really dark really fast within 8 hours. I kept what I had on and stayed over at Alex's place. She stayed in her pjs pretty much all day until it was time to go. She takes forever to take a shower. She got dressed and wore her typical black baggy pants and white tank top.

"Ready?" she said to me.

I just nodded my head and followed her out the door. I just realized that I definitely needed a car but the Ravine wasn't that far from her place or mine. It wasn't far from school period.

It was cold outside though. Good thing I was wearing this sweatshirt. I wonder how Alex can stand the cold. Probably used to it.

Once we got closer to the woods, I heard a lot of noises. Like laughing and talking. And there it was. It was pretty big. There was a fire going on and a lot of drunken teenagers I've seen from school. I felt out of place. Alex told me to grab a seat so I did. I sat down on a bench there and watched a couple start making out on the ground. I know you're desperate but jeez.

Alex came back and gave me a beer. I don't usually drink but right now, I didn't really care. I hoped it would help me forget about everything.

After hanging out with Alex for a while, she was picked up by someone. Was his name Towerz? Yeah, that's his name. I haven't seen him for a while. I started talking to some random girl named Isabelle. She seemed nice. Reminded me of a Barbie doll.

"Is that Eleanor Nash?" I heard someone say to me. I turned around and saw a very blurry figure that looked like Jay. It was Jay.

He came closer to me and looked at how many beer bottles I had. I only had 4 but I was pretty strong at keeping it down.

"Jay Hogart. Showing your face again around these parts?" I teased him. He just gave me a look and sat down next to me.

"And here I was thinking that poor little you would never come around here. Too bad you're late, I could have done some very interesting things with you." He was drunk. And I was too. And flirting definitely became a part of our conversation.

"Huh, you wouldn't have the nerve to do anything with me just so you can get off." I said back to him.

"You willing to make a bet on that, Nash?" He was touching me.

"I don't need to make a bet on it. I already know." I said back to him. We both held this intense gaze before I rejected him. Poor Jay, right? He deserved it. Instead he took Isabelle.

Where was Alex?

This Ravine wasn't as bad as I thought. I got hit on by Jay and met Isabelle. What else could happen?

"Ellie."

I turned around and saw the person I least expected.

XXXX

"Craig." I rubbed my eyes to make it look better, which it didn't. "What are you doing here?"

"Having fun," he lifted the beer in his hand. "Angie's at her grandmother's and I am home free." Yeah, he was definitely drunk.

I nodded my head and looked at the fire in the middle. I didn't notice that Craig had taken a seat next to me. "Look, about that kiss," Craig said.

"Craig, it just happened okay? It was a one time thing." Either the alcohol was making it worse but I secretly wanted it to happen again. I hate that feeling.

"Right. Just a one time thing. I just wanted to clear it up." Craig said. He looked at his beer and shook it. It was empty. He threw it on the ground.

"Aren't you supposed to be with Marco and Jimmy?" I asked him. He looked at me with this drunk but intense gaze at me.

"Aren't you?" He asked me back. I deserved that.

"Touché." I said to him. "Other plans?"

"Yeah. You?" I nodded my head yes.

"Look, wanna get out of here?" He asked me. He had this longing look on his face. I looked around for Alex but she was nowhere to be found.

"Um, yeah." I got up and followed him to another part of the Ravine. I was surprised we could both walk when you're drunk. There were a few people around, making out or whatnot and I saw Alex coming out of a van with Towerz.

"Alex." I said to her.

"Hey, Nash. What's Manning doing here?" She asked me and got distracted again with Towerz. "See you around." And like that she was gone.

"Did I just see Alex with Towerz?" Craig asked.

"Yeah, you did." I said back to him. He took my arm. And said let's go. I just followed him into the van, which was the lion's den, I thought.

XXXX

It looked cozy in here. A little too cozy. Bad shag carpet from the 70s. All we needed was a disco ball and a lava lamp. Craig sat down. "I feel like I should be doing the hustle." He smiled.

"You got that vibe too?" I sat down next to him in a seat. I didn't exactly trust what was on the floor and with the reputation the Ravine has no sitting on the carpet.

It was quiet between. Quiet you can drop in a pin in here. Oh yeah, shag carpet. You could lose the pin in there.

I felt Craig's gaze on me again and looked back. My breath became really unstable. His hand touched mine and his fingers hooked onto mine. I couldn't resist. I'm really sorry Ashley but you're not here. I kept repeating that in my head as our lips touched again for the second time today.

God, Craig was some kisser.

Who am I kidding? I couldn't deny this. My back was against the van and Craig moved away from my lips. I was disappointed. I tried not to frown but forgot about it once his lips were on my neck. My hands went to neck as his went to my shoulders and down to my hips. I didn't know what to do. All I could do was enjoy it, which I was.

My legs were open to let him through and we kissed again. He really was a good kisser. I wondered how both Manny and Ashley dealt with this. There was tugging on my sweatshirt and I took it off. I got really hot in here or was it me? But I couldn't stop. I didn't want him to.

"Ellie, what are we doing?" He said in the middle of kissing me.

"I don't know. Just don't stop." I told him. Damn beer. Damn Alex bringing me here. Damn Jay for getting me started. And damn Craig for finishing it.

"Are you sure?" He asked me. He looked into my eyes and was out of breath.

"I'll tell you when to stop," I said to him. I kissed him again and these seats were not gonna work. We ended up on the carpet instead. I told myself I wasn't gonna get on it. But the other part of me didn't really care.

The ravine had taken another one.

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A/N: So what did Craig and Ellie do? Draw your own conclusion, haha. Cause I know what happened. But they didn't get that far, jeez guys. Chapter 8 will be up soon. Review this part huh?


	8. Chapter VIII: Bittersweet

Another Writing on the Wall 

Rated: R for very obvious reasons if you got this far.

Disclaimer: I don't own anyone remember? Kinda sucks.

A/N: Thanks to all who reviewed. It keeps me inspired to keep writing. Here's chapter 8, done in Craig's POV. Also, "The Writing on the Wall," with Paige/Alex, will be updated sometime during this week.

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Chapter VIII: Bittersweet

(Craig's POV)

Alcohol makes you do crazy things.

And this was the craziest.

Was it crazy for me to take advantage like this? Was it crazy for me to want her? For me to tell her how much I think she's beautiful? Is it crazy for a psycho guitarist to like her? I don't have the answers to that. I sure wish I did.

I kissed Ellie…again. And she kissed me back…again. She has really soft lips, you know? Okay Sean knows and maybe Marco, from his pre-boys days. But I didn't know. She's a good kisser, too. The way she was holding onto me made me shiver.

"Oh Craig," God, even the way she said my name made me shiver. I couldn't stop. She didn't tell me to stop. Not yet.

If I could get any closer to her, I…I don't know what I'd do. But this is right now, and I wasn't gonna spoil it.

We were on that shag carpet, grabbing each other like we were needy. Is that the word? Maybe we were. I haven't been with anyone since Ash left and I'm assuming Ellie didn't since Sean. But how could Sean leave someone so beautiful behind? Even in the dark, you could see her beauty. She looked flushed and stopped me.

No, I don't wanna stop.

"We should stop." She gently pushed me off her and sat up. We both were out of breath. I heard her sigh. She was thinking. I could tell. Please don't tell me that you're sorry and that you regret it. "Let's not tell anyone about this." Yes, I can do that.

"Deal."

And it was over, right?

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Wrong.

It's been 3 days since I last saw Ellie. 3 days since I held her. 3 days since I kissed her.

And there I was again, in therapy. And it was Wednesday. I sat in the same chair like I always did. It was right next to Rod. And right across from me was Ellie. She looked good. Who am I kidding? She looked great. It was the first time I ever saw her in jeans before. Her hair was curly, too.

"Craig," Mark said. Oh, great. I didn't wanna talk about my weekend. "How was your weekend?"

"Uh," I started. "It could have been better. Been getting along with my step sister lately and just been having fun." Yeah, minus Joey in the hospital, a headache from all the drinking last night and kissing Ellie. Everyone bought it. Even Rod. Mark just nodded his head like he was pleased and moved on to Rod. We were going around in a circle, telling everyone about our weekend.

I noticed that Ellie wasn't paying attention. She was just looking out the window again, which showed raindrops. She had one of those faces that showed that something was wrong. She was hiding it. I should know. I was doing the same thing.

She looked away from the window when Mark called her name. "Ellie, tell us about your weekend."

She sighed before answering. "I've been hanging out with my friends lately. Pretty much it." She said.

"And how's the home life?" Mark asked. For a second, I saw sadness. I don't know if Mark did.

"Okay I guess." She looked down and started snapping those rubber bands. What's up with that?

"Just okay?" Mark was pushing it.

"Yeah, just fine." Ellie was a good liar. But it didn't fool me.

We both looked at each other for a few seconds before she looked away. I just sighed before I looked at the clock again. Time to go. Mark dismissed us and Ellie was the first to leave. She wasn't going to get away so easily.

She was halfway out the entrance doors but I called her out. "Ellie, wait up." She didn't stop or kept going. She just slowed down some. I caught up with her. "Hey, what's the hurry?"

She didn't say anything at first but looked at the ground. "I just wanna get out of here. It's nothing else." She told me. I bought that. She just looked so vulnerable.

"Oh, well, come with me then." I told her. She looked unsure and I heard her sigh again. That meant she was thinking. Ellie nodded her head and went through the doors. I followed her behind but I took her to some place. Not the park, not her home but my place.

XXXX

Ellie was picking at my amps in the garage. She looked unsure. I was unsure. Perfect match, right? She just sighed and sat down on the couch that was near the door. I thought Joey threw that away.

I hit my foot on the amp by accident and cursed under my breath. I think Ellie heard me.

"How's it going?" Ellie asked me. She pointed to the guitar case.

I just sighed at it. "Huh, it's gone missing. I was stupid at losing that guitar. Joey's gonna buy me another one day since Ash bought me that one." I just treaded off.

Ellie nodded her head and moved around on the couch. "I haven't touched mine since Ash left. Guess she had a big effect on our lives, huh?"

I sighed. "Yeah."

Talk about awkward.

"Look, about the other night.." She started. I cut her off. I didn't wanna hear it.

"It just happened right? And personally, I don't regret it." I told her up front. She just looked at me and I couldn't look away.

"You don't?" I shook my head no. "I just don't want it to be awkward between us. I mean, we hardly know each other and…"

"It just happened. We were drunk and shit was going down." I explained to her.

"Fine. It just happened." She nodded her head. I got nervous.

I was getting really nervous when we looked at each other again. I haven't looked at anyone that intense since the whole Manny thing.

Her eyes were really brown up close.

But how could I resist her again?

Sure, I was sober now but when I was drunk when I first kissed her. But I had no time to think about soberness and drinking when I kissed her again. And this time, she wasn't pulling away.

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A/N: Sorry for taking so long. I had major writer's block and being involved in a Degrassi Cast RP kinda got me distracted. But I'm back. And as of the moment, Writing's on the Wall with Paige/Alex is WIP and chapter 9 of AWOW is coming up.


	9. Chapter IX: Temptation

Another Writing on the Wall 

Rated: R for obvious reasons.

Disclaimer: I don't own Degrassi remember? Just borrowing them for now.

A/N: Major updating on this fic and the Alex/Paige one. Been so busy with school and doing rps, etc so now I'm back. So first updating this one and I promise WOTW will be updated tomorrow.

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Chapter IX: Temptation

(Ellie's POV)

I don't know what I was thinking about coming over to Craig's. I just did it. Sounds confusing, I know but that's what I did. Besides, after hearing about Ashley's times being here, I had to see what the Manning household looked like. But when I followed him to wherever we were headed, I didn't think to end up in his garage.

And when is stepped inside, it looked cluttered. There were amps around unplugged and an untouched keyboard, a few old tires and a couch. I sat on the couch. I saw Craig hit his foot on the amp and cussed under his breath. I heard him. My eyes treaded off to see a guitar case.

"How's it going?" I pointed to the case.

He sighed at it. "Huh, it's gone missing. I was stupid at losing that guitar. Joey's gonna buy me another one day since Ash bought me that one." He mentioned.

I nodded my head and started to move around on the couch. It was sorta lumpy. "I haven't touched mine since Ash left. Guess she had a big effect on our lives, huh?"

Craig sighed again. "Yeah."

Can this get anymore weirder?

"Look, about the other night.." I started. He cut me off. I guess he didn't want to hear that from me.

"It just happened right? And personally, I don't regret it." Craig told me up front. I just looked at me and I knew he couldn't look away. Not after what we did.

"You don't?" He shook his head no. "I just don't want it to be awkward between us. I mean, we hardly know each other and…"

"It just happened. We were drunk and shit was going down." Craig explained to me while I looked uncomfortable.

"Fine. It just happened." I replied back. Craig just nodded his head like he agreed and it got silent again. But we couldn't look away.

Somehow I was really getting nervous. I don't look at anyone like that. Maybe with Marco when he and I were together, sorta and with Sean, it was intense staring that got us more closer than I ever could have thought.

I noticed that his eyes were glancing at my lips. Did he want to kiss me again? I don't know. But I couldn't resist him again. Sure, I was sober now but when I was drunk when we kissed. But all these thoughts were pushed away when his lips touched mine again, without the help of alcohol. It was just hot, heated passion. Maybe lust. But for some reason, I didn't pull away, and neither did he.

And I kept kissing him.

XXXX

His lips against mine just felt so right. Like maybe I was meant to kiss him but I knew what pain this would cause. I mean, did he like me? Or did he just want me as one of those friends with benefits? I wasn't going to let myself be thrown out there and be hurt again. Not after Marco me to be his true self or even Sean.

But what could I do?

How could I not resist him? A part of me was a bit jealous of him and Ashley when they were together. So perfect and so into each other. A part of me wanted to be Ashley but it would crush her if she found out that in the beginning I had a thing for him. But she doesn't know that. Neither does Craig, and never will.

We kissed for what seemed forever, taking little breaths here and there but we never parted from each other's arms. "You're so beautiful." He whispered in my ear, a saying I never thought I'd hear. It was something new, a compliment that I didn't even heard from Sean. Though we said I love you and it meant something, but this was new. How was I gonna take that?

I parted away from him, slightly embarrassed and looked down at the floor of the couch, inching away from him. "Ellie…" he said to me.

"Craig, why are we doing this?" I asked him. I wanted to know. I needed to know.

"I don't know." Craig said to me, sighing deeply. "I just wanted to kiss you again." He said that quite honest.

I looked at him and looked down again. I sighed and scratched my arm, feeling the small marks I was making on them. Good thing he didn't see them. "Craig, I just don't know what to do about this." I replied. "I mean, you're Ashley's ex-boyfriend and I don't know if I can deal with this right now."

He nodded his head. "I understand."

"Do you?"

"I don't want to but if that's what you want, that's fine." He said kind of upset to me. He got up from his position and opened the door to leave the garage. He wasn't going to win this war.

I got up from my spot and stopped him. "Stop." I said to him, turning him around. I never noticed but his hair got slightly darker. It looked more black than brown. I looked up at him, nearing close to him. My eyes treaded up to his, locking in another intense gaze. I leaned up and pressed my lips against him again.

This was it. I was giving in. Into the temptation that I was avoiding for days.

And he kissed me back instantly, his hands on my waist, pulling me to him. He picked me up off the ground; my legs went around him. He was strong too. I didn't know that. He carried me to the couch while we were still kissing.

It seemed that Craig was giving into the temptation too.

Cause the next thing I noticed our jackets ended up on the floor as well as a few other clothing that I let him take off. But I couldn't let it go too far. I didn't want him to see me like this. Not in a garage, vulnerable and with train marks on my arms, I didn't want that. But I wanted to feel his arms around me again. And soon, I was sucked into his temptation again.

XXXX

A/N: The end of chapter 9, yay! Chapter 10, in Craig's POV will be up soon. And I'm thinking of adding a sequel to this fic alone, since I know how the ending will be and everything. As well as a new part to the compilation series involving a new unconventional couple. I won't reveal who but it will have a mini-triangle in it. Bum bum bum, haha. So any ideas or comments please leave them in the reviewing box but no flaming here cause I have no time for it and neither do you.


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